WeWork Adds to Seattle Presence with Two New Leases
WeWork, an international co-working space provider, is greatly adding to its Emerald City footprint, as a recent report by Colliers International reveals that WeWork signed the two largest leases in Seattle in the second quarter of 2018, securing 120,000 square feet of office space at Metropolitan Park East, and an additional 115,000 at 1201 3rd Avenue. Seattle ranked tenth on the list of the nation’s top office markets, but its performance is quite stellar given the strength of WeWork and e-commerce giant Amazon.
The report examines data from downtown, Pioneer Square, Belltown, Lake Union, Queen Anne and Ballard, which reveals the Puget Sound is now home to over 2 million square feet of co-working space. WeWork is the clear titan, representing 63 percent of market share. As Puget Sound Business Journal writes, “WeWork has become such a force in Seattle that it is driving construction of a 36-story Belltown office tower that will house a WeWork and the West Coast’s first WeLive community.”
Seattle saw a dip in vacancy rate (by 70 basis points), which represented the third lowest in the report and can be attributed to WeWork’s moves and to Amazon’s occupancy of 400,000 square feet of office space in the Macy’s building at 300 Pine Street.
The region remains relatively affordable when compared to other tech hubs, as the Central Business District and Lake Union are the only two submarkets above $40 per square foot. According to the report, “top rents in core San Francisco and Silicon Valley locations are in striking distance of $100 per square foot,” which could explain why companies such as Google are adding square footage to their office operations in the Pacific Northwest.